# HEAP size change **URL:** \ **Category:** Elasticsearch\ **Created:** [December 20, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/heap-size-change/10126 "2012-12-20T01:09:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Brandon\_Hilkert](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/brandon_hilkert/32/2182_2.png) [@Brandon\_Hilkert](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Brandon_Hilkert)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/heap-size-change/10126/1 "2012-12-20T01:09:23Z")
Version: 0.19.4 What is the right way to update the heap size? I've tried exporting the following keys: export ES\_HEAP\_SIZE=4g export ES\_MIN\_MEM=4g export ES\_MAX\_MEM=4g But don't see anything different tacked on to the end of the process. Any ideas? ubuntu@ip-10-12-185-166:/etc/elasticsearch$ ps ax | grep elasticsearch 1554 ? Sl 0:15 /usr/lib/jvm/java-6-openjdk-amd64//bin/java -Xms256m -Xmx1g -Xss256k -XX:+UseParNewGC -XX:+UseConcMarkSweepGC -XX:CMSInitiatingOccupancyFraction=75 -XX:+UseCMSInitiatingOccupancyOnly -XX:+HeapDumpOnOutOfMemoryError -Delasticsearch -Des.pidfile=/var/run/elasticsearch.pid -Des.path.home=/usr/share/elasticsearch -cp :/usr/share/elasticsearch/lib/_:/usr/share/elasticsearch/lib/sigar/_ -Des.config=/etc/elasticsearch/elasticsearch.yml -Des.path.home=/usr/share/elasticsearch -Des.path.logs=/var/log/elasticsearch -Des.path.data=/var/lib/elasticsearch -Des.path.work=/tmp/elasticsearch -Des.path.conf=/etc/elasticsearch org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.ElasticSearch -- ---
**Author:** ![Ivan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/df788c/32.png) [@Ivan](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Ivan)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 6:20am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/heap-size-change/10126/2 "2012-12-20T06:20:00Z")
Are you using the service wrapper? The settings look correct. You shouldn't need to set the min and max since ES\_HEAP\_SIZE already sets both automatically. -- Ivan On Wed, Dec 19, 2012 at 5:09 PM, Brandon Hilkert [brandon@meeteor.com](mailto:brandon@meeteor.com)wrote: > 1554 ? Sl 0:15 /usr/lib/jvm/java-6-openjdk-amd64//bin/java > -Xms256m -Xmx1g -Xss256k -XX:+UseParNewGC -XX:+UseConcMarkSweepGC > -XX:CMSInitiatingOccupancyFraction=75 -XX:+UseCMSInitiatingOccupancyOnly > -XX:+HeapDumpOnOutOfMemoryError -Delasticsearch > -Des.pidfile=/var/run/elasticsearch.pid > -Des.path.home=/usr/share/elasticsearch -cp > :/usr/share/elasticsearch/lib/_:/usr/share/elasticsearch/lib/sigar/_ > -Des.config=/etc/elasticsearch/elasticsearch.yml > -Des.path.home=/usr/share/elasticsearch > -Des.path.logs=/var/log/elasticsearch -Des.path.data=/var/lib/elasticsearch > -Des.path.work=/tmp/elasticsearch -Des.path.conf=/etc/elasticsearch > org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.Elasticsearch -- ---
**Author:** ![karmi](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/karmi/32/44951_2.png) [@karmi](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/karmi)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 8:46am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/heap-size-change/10126/3 "2012-12-20T08:46:07Z")
> What is the right way to update the heap size? Using the ES\_HEAP\_SIZE is reccomended. For the settings to be applied, it depends on how you launch the Elasticsearch process. The service wrapper takes this variable into account, as well as the `elasticsearch` script. Many provisioning scripts set these values directly in the [https://github.com/elasticsearch/elasticsearch/blob/master/bin/elasticsearch.in.sh](https://github.com/elasticsearch/elasticsearch/blob/master/bin/elasticsearch.in.sh) file. The most safe to have this setting applied is to pass it to the environment when you launch the process: ``` $ ES_HEAP_SIZE=512m elasticsearch -f $ ... initializing ... $ ps aux | grep java $ 40315 ... ``` /System/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/1.6.0.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -Xms512m -Xmx512m ... org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.Elasticsearch Karel -- ---
**Author:** ![Brandon\_Hilkert](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/brandon_hilkert/32/2182_2.png) [@Brandon\_Hilkert](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Brandon_Hilkert)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 12:30pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/heap-size-change/10126/4 "2012-12-20T12:30:02Z")
I do have the service wrapper installed. ES is started with the OS (Ubuntu). I usually run "sudo service elasticsearch restart" from the command line. I realized the service wrapper installed a scripte into /etc/init.d/elasticsearch when i "installed" the service. That file contained the references to the ES\_HEAP\_SIZE variable. I set the value in there and it worked. Not sure why it doesn't with the ENV variable. On Thu, Dec 20, 2012 at 3:46 AM, Karel Minařík [karel.minarik@gmail.com](mailto:karel.minarik@gmail.com)wrote: > What is the right way to update the heap size? > > > > > Using the ES\_HEAP\_SIZE is reccomended. For the settings to be applied, it > depends on how you launch the Elasticsearch process. The service wrapper > takes this variable into account, as well as the `elasticsearch` script. > Many provisioning scripts set these values directly in the \< > [https://github.com/elasticsearch/elasticsearch/blob/master/bin/elasticsearch.in.sh](https://github.com/elasticsearch/elasticsearch/blob/master/bin/elasticsearch.in.sh)\> > file. > > The most safe to have this setting applied is to pass it to the > environment when you launch the process: > > ``` > $ ES_HEAP_SIZE=512m elasticsearch -f > $ ... initializing ... > $ ps aux | grep java > $ 40315 ... > > ``` > > /System/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/1.6.0.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java > -Xms512m -Xmx512m ... org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.Elasticsearch > > Karel > > -- -- ---
**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/1/a/1ac57faf039f6b580b3f104ef42a2a89e41014de.png) [@system](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/system)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2017, 2:59am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/heap-size-change/10126/5 "2017-07-06T02:59:06Z")